Venezuelan opposition leader and Nobel Peace Prize winner Maria Corina Machado met with Pope Leo XIV during a private audience on Monday.

So far, few details have been released about the meeting.

On Friday, the pontiff called for Venezuela’s sovereignty to be protected and issued an appeal “to respect the will of the Venezuelan people and to safeguard the human and civil rights of all.”

Machado, who is currently touring Europe, is expected to meet with Trump this week after he said on January 3 that she did not have the support or respect to lead the country.

She had dedicated her Nobel Peace Prize to Trump, who deeply covets the honour himself.

The Venezuelan opposition, which has been supported by Republican and Democratic administrations in the US, had pledged to replace Maduro with one of their own.

However, after the abduction of Maduro, Trump sidestepped the group, and Vice President Delcy Rodriguez became interim president.

Al Jazeera report

Trump to meet with Venezuelan opposition leader Machado on Thursday – Al Jazeera report.